3-benzhydrylmorpholine and salts thereof, and method of preparing said compounds



United States Patent 1 2,993,895 3-BENZHYDRYLMORPHOLINE AND SALTS THEREOF, AND METHOD OF PREPAR- ING SAID COMPOUNDS Stanley 0. Winthrop, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, assignor to American Home Products' Corporation, New York, N;Y., a corporation of Delaware N0 Drawing. Filed Feb. 25, 1959, Ser. No. 795,352 3 Claims. -(Cl. 260 -447) This invention is concerned with certain new chemical compounds'wh-ioh are pharmacologically active, and to ayprocess by which they may be prepared from readily available starting materials.

More particularly, my invention relates to the novel chemical compound, 3-benzhydrylmorpholine, to salts thereof, especially salts with hydroha-lic acids, and to a new method by which all of these compounds may be prepared from the readily available starting material 5,3- diphenylal-anine. The new chemical compounds thus resulting, 3-benzhydrylmorpholine, as well asitsacid addition salts with pharmaceutically acceptable acids, such as hydrochloric and other hydrohalic acids, are pharmacologieally active, particularly as stimulants of the central nervous system.

The new chemical compound which my invention makes it"possible to prepare, S-benzhydrylmorpholine, has the structural formula It forms acid addition salts with phamnaceutically acceptable :acids, i.e. thosewhich are non-toxic, andthese salts exhibit the same pharmacological activity as-the free base. They may therefore be used interchangeably in medicine.

The new chemical compound 3-ben-zhydryl-morpholine, pharmacologically active in the free base form, or in the form of its pharmaceutically acceptable acid addition salts, particularly those with the hydrohalic acids such as hydrochloric acid, may be prepared in accordance with a series of chemical reactions which may be indicated schematically as follows.

CH.CH.OOOH

Procedural details-of the synthesis are given in the following illustrative examples.

EXAMPLE 1 Ethyl pfi-diphenylalaninate hydrochloride 40 grams of figfi-diphenylalanine and 600 ml. of 10 percent ethanolic hydrogen chloride were heated'at reflux for four hours. The etha'nol' was stripped off, leaving 46 grams of ethyl [3,;3-diphenylalaninate hydrochloride, melting point 195196 C; (dec). Recrystallization irom'an ethanol-ether mixture raised the meltingpoint of the compound to 200-'201 C. (dec).

Calculated for C H NO Clz N, 4258; C1, 11.60. Found: N, 4.54; CI, 11.48.

EXAMPLE 2 3,3-diphenyZ-Z-amino-Lpropanol 46 grams (0.15 mole) of ethyl 6,;8-diphenylalaninate hydrochloride was dissolved in water, neutralized by'the addition of sodium carbonate, and" the free base, ethyl flfi-diphenylalaninate, taken up in ether and dried. The ether solution (400 ml.) was added dropwise, with stirringto 1114 grams (0.3 mole) of lithium aluminum hydride in 200 ml. of ether; The addition wascornplete in 30 minutes and refluxing was continued for another hour. 50 mls. of water was then added, and the precipitated aluminum hydroxide removed by filtration and washed with acetone. The'ether and acetone filtrates were then combined and stripped, leavingbehind an oily residue. The product was 3,3-diphenyl-2-amino-1-propanel and triturating with hexane gave 14 grams of this product, melting point 117-=119"C. Upon recrystallization from benzene the melting ,poin'twas'raised to 120- 121 C. I

Calculated for C H NO: C, 79.26;-H, 7.54; N,-6.l7. Found: C, 79.38; H, 7.74; N, 6.20.

EXAMPLE 3 3,3-diphenyl-2-(oz-chloroacetylamino)-1-pr0panol 8.9 grams (0.039 mole) of 3,3-diphenyl-2-amino-lpropanol was added to a mixture of 107 ml. of ethylene dichloride and 71 ml. of water containing 2.3 grams (0.057 mole) of sodium hydroxide. The mixture was CH.CH.COO.CH2.CH:

Hi- Q B,fi-diphenylalanlne Ethyl fi,fl-diphenylalaninate LlAllEh Q O1.CHz.COCl

CECE-CH1 CH.CH.GH:OH

3,3-diphenyl-2-amlno-1- propanol KOH \ i O Q U Q 5-benzhydryl-3-morpholone Nncocrnm 8,3-dlpl1enyl-2- (oz-chloroacetylamino)-1-propanol B-benzhydryl morphollue u l .a

stirred and cooled to C. 6.4 grams (0.057 mole) of chloroacetyl chloride was then added dropwise, while EXAMPLE 4 -benzhydryl-3-morpholone 1.7 grams (0.0056 mole) of 3,3-diphenyl-2-(a-chloroaeetylamino)-1-propanol was dissolved in mls. of absolute ethanol containing 0.32 gram (0.0056 mole) of powdered, dried potassium hydroxide. The solution was stirred at room temperature for 4 hours, after which the precipitated potassium chloride in the amount of 0.38 gram was removed by fitration. The ethanol filtrate was stripped and the oil residue triturated with ether to give 1.0 gram of a solid product melting at l33-135 C. This product was S-benzhydryl-B-morpholone, and upon recrystallization from methanol its melting point was raised to 135136 C.

Calculated for C H NO C, 76.37; H, 6.42; N, 5.24. Found: C, 75.67; H, 6.21; N, 5.19.

EXAMPLE 5 3-benzhydrylmorpholine 3.9 grams (0.0146 mole) of S-benzhydryl-S-morpholone was dissolved in 150 ml. of tetrahydrofuran and the solution added dropwise, with stirring, to 1.6 gram (0.0292 mole) of lithium aluminum hydride in 50 ml. of tetrahydrofuran. The addition was complete in 20 minutes, and the reaction mixture was then refluxed for an additional period of 2 hours. The hydride complex was then hydrolyzed by the addition of 4.7 ml. of water.

After filtration, the ether filtrate was dried and gaseous hydrogen chloride introduced. This resulted in the precipitation of 1.55 gram of a solid product which melted at a temperature in excess of 260 C. (dec.). Upon recrystallization from isopropanol, there was obtained an analytically pure product, 3-henzhydrylmorpholinc hydrochloride.

Calculated for C H NOCl: N, 4.83; C1, 1223. Found: N, 4.87; Cl, 12.47.

Upon treatment of the 3-benzhydrylmorpholine hydrochloride with aqueous sodium carbonate the free base, 3-benzhydrylmorpholine was liberated, as a viscous oil. This oil was taken up in ether and dried over sodium sulfate. Upon stripping oil the ether the pure free base remained as a light brown viscous oil. By treatment with aqueous hydrogen chloride it was converted to the hydrochloride salt whose composition was established by analysis, thus characterizing the free base.

I claim:

1. A compound selected from the group consisting of 3-benzhydrylmorpholine and hydrohalide salts thereof.

2. 3-benzhydrylmorpholine.

3. 3-benzhydrylmorpholine hydrochloride.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Winthrop Aug. 2, 1960 OTHER REFERENCES 

1. A COMPOUND SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF 3-BENZHYDRYLMORPHOLINE AND HYDROHALIDE SALTS THEREOF. 